The last part of the journal is what I would call the how-to section. I can accept this section as it does not tell me how to do a certain project. I don’t want to do someone else’s project. I want to learn how they achieved a certain look and then use it to make my own project. Thr3fold has respect for their readers; thank yo for not treating me like a moron!
There are five parts to this section:
- One Hit Wonders: Monoprinting, pg.30-33
- Shadow Play, pg. 34-37
- Working on the Edge, pg.38-41
- Drawn to Pen and Ink, pg.42-45
- Dyeing for Color, pg.46-51
And the journal ends up with the The Last Word, pg.52.
I began reading the One Hit Wonders: Monoprinting, pg.30-33 article and my eyes started to glaze over. I put Thr3fold down and went and did something else for awhile. When I came back to it, I was in a better frame of mind and really became intrigued by the process, because the article shows you how to get words onto your quilt in your own handwriting!
The article tells you very clearly what a monoprint is and the different ways that it can be used in fiber arts. I also liked the way, once the basics were taken care of, that they suggested variations on the theme.
Just a note about supplies: I think they forgot to mention the brayer in the supply list.
Shadow Play, pg. 34-37 has absolutely gorgeous pictures associated with the article. Shadow applique’ is the technique they teach in this article, which is a combination of digital printing and applique’. Linda starts the article by saying that this technique is a way of building up layers in a quilt. You can clearly see in the examples, the layering of fabric, embroidery stitches, embellishments and quilting to achieve a rich look.
One section talks about digital printing in fairly specific detail. Once that hurdle is crossed, Linda moves on to designing the piece and discusses auditioning fabrics as well as rummaging through her scrapbasket.
The final piece is gorgeous. I love the quilting pattern and have seen it enough in this journal to attempt it next time I have a small piece to quilt.
While I can’t imagine ever having enough time to work on the binding in a way that would make the Thr3fold girls proud, I love the ideas espoused in Working on the Edge, pg.38-41. The article discusses embellishing your binding. They touch ever so briefly on attaching the binding (no step by step details – HOORAY!), but spend most of the article on choosing the right color for the binding and embellishing it. These are seriously creative women. I would never have thought of continuing a line of beading out into the binding, but it makes perfect sense. A few beads and a little blanket stitching would add some interest that might take judges’ eyes away from less that stellar sections of the binding. The article discusses it all. It is really a catalog of ways to dress up your binding.
Drawn to Pen and Ink, pg.42-45 really stuck in my mind because of one of the photographs. They use a maple leaf as an example of drawing with pen and ink on your fabric (or paper). The photo that got me thinking was the one where they had traced around the leaf on a light table and cut it out of white paper or cardstock. Since leaves can be fragile, this is an excellent way to use the leaf over and over to try new ways of embellishing it. It also mitigates the whining of “I can’t draw that!”
The article talks about implements and makes me want to try one of those Koh-i-noor pens. They look carefully at the actual leaf to find areas that need to be a little darker. They also use the leaf to find the veins. I think that this idea combined with the idea of tracing over designs to get the major lines that we discussed in the Liz Berg class in January of 2006. BTW, Liz Berg discusses keeping a sketchbook as well. I really need to get to an art store!
As I may have mentioned, dyeing fabric is not my thing, but the Dyeing for Color, pg.46-51 article has such gorgeous illustrations and pictures of the gorgeous fabric they produce that it makes me want to take up a new hobby. They discuss the various ways you can dye and what to do when you are just starting out. All of the supplies and safety requirements are touched on. The authors also point out what dyeing you can do when you don’t have a dye studio. The article discusses the various products and different types of dyes. I also liked the sections on how to achieve different results, e.g. bag dyeing and layered dyeing.
Finally, the Last Word got me excited about the next issue by telling me what to look for (more challenges with slight variations on the theme, which made me think about a house quilt) and what they believe about their work.
My overall take: the photos in this journal alone are worth the price of admission.
Yes, I’ll look at the CD and review that as well…later.
